Feed means for control cards or the like



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March 29, 1955 w. T. GoLLwlTzER FEED MEANS FOR CONTROL CARDS OR THE LIKE 27, 1946 Original Filed May Mar'ch 29, 1955 w. T. GoLLwrrzER 2,705,142 A FEED MEANS FOR CONTROL CARDS OR THE LIKE Original Filed May 27, 1946 6 sheets-sheet 2 I March 29, 1955 w. T. GoLLwrrzER FEED MEANS FOR CONTROLl CARDS OR THE LIKE Original Filed May 27, 1946 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 WHY ANN. h\

NBN MN March 29, 1955 w. 1'. GoLLwlTzER 2,705,142

FEED MEANS FOR CONTROL CARDS OR THE LIKE Original Filed May 27, 1946 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 March 29, 1955 w. T. GoLLwlTzER FEED MEANS FOR CONTROL CARDS OR THE LIKE Original Filed May 27 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 m h mh mm R Nw\ A b@ March 29, 1955 w. T. GoLLwn-ZER FEED MEANS FOR CONTROL CARDS OR THE LIKE 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Original Filed May 27, 1946 FEED MEANS FOR CONTROL CARDS OR THE LIKE Walter T. Gollwitzer, Euclid, Ohio, assignor to Addressograph-Multigraph Corporation, Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware Original application May 27, 1946, Serial No. 672,581. Divided and this application October 12, 1951, Serial No. 251,084

4 Claims. (Cl. 271-44) This application is a division of my co-pending application, Serial No. 672,581, tiled May 27, 1946, now Patent No. 2,605,699, patented August 5, 1952.

This invention relates to a separating and feeding mechanism for cards and Since it is essential that only the lowermost card in a stack thereof in a hopper be advanced in the manner just described, it has been necessary to accurately construct and maintain arrangements at opposite ends of the hopper in order that advance movement could be limited to the lowermost card in a stack thereof 'in the hopper, and so to do it has been relatively expensive and somewhat difficult to maintain in cardfeeding and separating mechanisms as these vhave been made heretofore. It is therefore an object of this invention to confine to a restricted area ose parts of a card feeding and tions of the cards to be fed from the hopper may be engaged and to so arrange the guide member that the cards will be accurately positioned in the hopper, especially with reference to the means to be eifective to separate the lowermost card from the stack thereof in the hopper.

Yet another object of this invention is to dispose the means effective to separate the lowermost card in a stack of cards in the hopper in relatively close and accurate relationship with the means which orient the cards in e hopper with reference to the separating means.

ASeparation of cards in the stack thereof disposed in the hopper may be expedited if the cards in the stack are flexed betweenseparating operations thereon, and so to do is yet another object of this invention.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide feeding means exteriorly of the hopper which may be moved to and from cooperating relation with a card advanced from the hopper.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and claims and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which, by way of illustration, show a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the principle thereof and what I now consider to be the best mode in which I have contemplated applying that principle. Other embodiments of the invention embodying the same or equivalent principles may be used and structural changes may be made as desired by those skilled in the art without departing from the present invention and the purview of the appended claims.

.In the drawings:

Fig. 1 isa front elevation of a printing vmachine in which my inventionhas been embodied;

Fig. 2 1s a plan view of the -machine with certain parts my novel feeding and separating broken away, showing arrangement in plane;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view through the machine and which is taken substantially on the lines 3 3 on Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a card of the nature adapted vto b e fed and separated by my novel mechanism; F1g. 5 is a side elevational vview of the-printing machine ig. 6 is a view of the ymodified driving arrangement taken substantially. on the linel 6 6 on F 5 ig. 7 is a view of the elements shown in Fig. 6, this view being taken in relationship with the plane in which Fig. 6 is taken;

8 is a vertical sectional view through my novel feedlng and separating arrangement and which is taken substantially on the line 8 8 on 2 ig. 9 is a View similar to Fig. 8 in different operatlve positions from those in which these parts are shown Fig. 10 is a transverse vertical my novel feeding mechanism and which is taken substantially on the line 10 10 on Fig. 2;

Fig. 11 is a horizontal sectional detail view taken substantially on the line 11 11 on Fig. l0; and taken substantially and respectivelyon the lines 12 12, 13 13, 14 14 and 15 15 on Fig)r 2.

The printing machine in which ,my novel feeding and separating mechanism is embodied in the present instance is of the nature described and claimed in detail co-pending application,

The printing machine embodies a supporting base 11 on which a supporting block 16, Fig. 3, for driving is mounted and which carries a driving motor 15.

Extending along the front of the machine is a feed table generally indicated by such cards or control members may be provided with4 located substantially midway 1n the longitudinal extent of the table 30. A receiving hopper 33A is provided at the delivery end of the table and the cards are advanced from sensing station to this hopper to be collected there- 1n.

A rotatably mounted shaft 34 is mounted above the table 30 and n spaced parallel relation therewith in suitable bearings vancing of the control cards C. At its right end, as shown ,in Fig. 1, the shaft 34 carries andisc 37 which bears an sectional view through' 14 and l5 are transverse sectional viewsy 35 and 36. This shaft extends substantially the full length of the table and controls and operates various mechanisms associated with the feeding and adlfantomes eccentric crank pin 38. The disc 37 is secured to the shaft 34 for rotation therewith.

A pitman 39 is connected at one end to the crank pin 38 and extends rearwardly of the machine, its rear end being connected to a link 41. The link 41, as best shown in Fig. 2, is pivotally connected to crank 43 which is pivoted on a stud 44 for oscillation in a horizontal plane. The stud 44 is mounted on an auxiliary or extension frame member 45 which is secured as by screws 46 to the rear edge of the table top and its supporting bar 32. The bell crank 43 is oscillated when the pitrnan 39 is reciprocated by rotation of the shaft 34. The shaft 34 is rotated by means to be described hereinbelow.

The free arm 47 of bell crank 43 is slotted as indicated at 48 to receive a roller 49 carried on a stud 50 which is mounted on a slidably mounted horizontal plate 51. The plate 51 is provided on its rear edge and near the outer or right end thereof, as seen in Figs. l, 8 and 9, with a vertical extension 52, and this vertical extension terminates in a horizontal ange portion 53 which is bent rearwardly to engage a guide slot 54 in the forward vertical face of the extension frame member 45. Oscillation of the bell crank, therefore, causes the plate 51 to move alternately to the right and to the left, the plate extension 52, 53 serving to guide movement of such plate in a horizontal plane.

The plate 51 has a longitudinal recess 55 in its upper face in which a leaf spring 56 is secured as by screws 57. This leaf spring functions as a feed plate, as will be more fully described below. It is so arranged as to be normally self-biased toward the supporting plate 51 so that it lies substantially flush but projecting slightly above the surface of plate 51. The amount of this projection is equal to or just slightly less than the minimum thickness of one of the cards C. Near its left end, as seen in Figs. 8 and 9, the leaf spring 56 carries a rivet 58, the head of which is mounted in and extends through an opening 59 in the supporting plate 51. The head is somewhat thicker than the part of plate 51 which underlies the leaf spring 56. Plate 51 is adapted to reciprocate over and to ride upon the top surface of the plate 33 which constitutes the feeding surface of the table. At its extreme right end, as shown in Figs. 8 and 9, and aligned with the head or rivet 58, the plate 33 is provided with a groove or slot 61 which is so shaped as to receive the rivet head as the plates 51 and 56 are advanced to the left, as seen in these views. This groove becomes shallower toward the left end and finally merges with the top of the table so that the plates 51 and 56 move to the left, the rivet 58 is raised thereby lifting the forward end of the feed plate 56 into more effective feeding relationship with the lowermost card C in the stack of cards.

As best shown in Figs. 8 and 9, the stack of cards C is retained in feeding position by a hopper which comprises a side wall 62, an upright part 63 at the right or rear end ofthe stack and a side wall member 64, shown in Figs. 2, and 1l. The side wall member 64 has secured thereto a vertical bar 65 which, as shown in Fig. 11, is triangular in cross section and is located so that its lower end clears plate 66, which constitutes part of the bottom of the hopper at this point, by an amount equal to or very slightly greater than the thickness of a single card C. As shown in Figs. 4 and 11, each of the` cards as C is provided with a notch 67 of a size and shape complementary to the configuration of the bar 65. Cards of this specific character are more fully described in the application led jointly by myself and John H. Gruver, Serial No. 648,075, filed February 16, 1946 (Patent No. 2,521,118, patented September 5. 1950). Since the side plates 62 and 64 are spaced apart a distance which is equal to the width of a card C, cards can only be pnt in the hopper when properly oriented, that is, when the notch 67 in each card will properly engage the triangular bar 65.

The bar 65, therefore, together with the underlying plate 66 and with the cooperation of the side walls 62 and 64, constitutes a feed gate which controls the feeding of cards by the feed plate only one card can be fed at a time. arranged that the end of the plate 51 when in its extreme right hand position, as shown in Fig.` 8, is never fully withdrawn from under the stack of cards. Hence the feed plate 56 is always in position to engage the bottom The parts are so 56 in such a manner that Cil an arm 42 of a bell 4 card of the stack and this is the only card that is free to be fed out below the lower end of the bar 65.

In order that cards will always be firmly positioned against the forward end of the supporting plate 51, for engagement with the feed plate 56, a weight 71 is provided. This weight may be equipped with a suitable handle, as shown at 72. As shown in Fig. 2, the block 71 includes a groove that is complementary to and which embraces the bar 65 and this prevents the block from sliding relative to cards on which it is rested especially during the time the feeding mechanism is operated.

As shown in Fig. l0, a channeled bar 73 is secured to the bottom of the plate 33 and the channeled portion thereof slidably receives a tongue member 74 which extends from and is secured to the plate 51. Engagement of the tongue member 74 with this channel, together with the sliding engagement between the flange 53 and the slot 54, as previously described, keeps the sliding plate 51 in proper alignment with the table top.

Near the left hand or exit end of the hopper, as seen in Figs. 8 and 9, there is mounted a flexing device 75 which is operated at each rotation of the shaft 34 to lift the left end of the stack of cards, as viewed in these figures, and ex them somewhat so as to make certain that the lowermost card will be engaged by the feed plate 56. As shown in Fig. 12, the member 75 comprises a hat bar which is bent at three points and is secured at its front end to a leaf spring 76. The spring 76 is secured by appropriate means to an auxiliary front bar 77 mounted above and secured to the front edge of the table and the supporting bar 31. A cam 77 on shaft 34 is fixed to rotate with the shaft as by means of a set screw 78. This cam has a at portion 79 which permits the leaf spring 76 to lower the member 75 during a part of each cycle of the feeder. This occurs at the time that the feed plate 56 is pushing the bottom card out of the `stack into the bite of feed rollers. Subsequently, rotation of the cam 77 raises the cards to the position shown in Fig. 8. The table top 33 has two openings 81 and 82 through which vertical portions of the bent bar 75 are extended, as shown in Fig. 12.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 13 a first feed roller 85 is mounted in a position to engage the advancing end of the bottom card as it is pushed out of the stack by the feeding plate 56 in the manner described above. The feed roller 85 is mounted on a sleeve 86 for rotation therewith, the sleeve 86 being mounted on a non-rotatable shaft 87. At its forward end the shaftis secured to a leaf spring 88 which is anchored to the bar 77 in the same manner as the leaf spring 76 which mounts the flexing barl or member 75, as described above. A belt pulley 89 is secured to the sleeve 86 for driving the roller and a belt 90 which passes about this pulley is driven by a pulley 91 supported on a jack shaft 92 mounted in a bracket 93, as shown in Figs. l and 3. The pulley 91 is secured to a larger pulley 94 which is driven by a belt 95 which passes about a pulley 96 on the motor 15. The belt 90 also passes forward, as shown in Fig. 1, about another pulley 97, Fig. 1, which drives another feed roller to be described presently. Returning, the belt 90 passes over a small idler pulley 98 which is mounted freely on the shaft 87 beside the pulley 89. By the means just described, the feed roller 85 is continuously driven but it is effective to advance a card only when it is in the lowered position, as shown in Fig. 13, that is, when the flat portion of a cam 99 on shaft 34 is disposed so as to lower the feed roller 85 into cooperating position with respect to a small idler roller 101 which is rotatably mounted on a bracket 102 beneath the table top and has its periphery extending through a slot 103 in the table top to a position substantially iiush with or very slightly above the table surface.

To guide the cards C as they advance, undercut guide bars 104 and 105 are mounted on the feed table, one being suitably fastened thereto at either side of the feed path so as to keep the cards in proper alignment. The front and rear edges of the cards ride in the grooves 106 and 107, respectively, and thus the cards are presente squarely to the sensing station, the guide bars 104 and 105 being spaced apart a distance equal to the width of a control card C.

It will be apparent from the foregoing description that al1 of the mechanisms which are eective to feed a card from the supply hopper to the receiving hopper are 86 operated or controlled by elements associated with the As shown in 125 and 126 are the same size so that the shafts 34 and 127 rotate in synchronism. When the machine is arranged in this manner a card is fed for each printing operation of the printing machine. However, for some purposes it may be desirable to print data sensed from the cards as C more than once as, for example, on the bodyand on one or more of the stubs of a check, receipt, utility bill or the like.

An arrangement for effecting more than a Figs. 1 and 2,

carried by the jack shaft and meshes with a similar bevel gear 126' on the rearwardly extending shaft 127. The ratio between spur gears 131 and 132 determines the number of revolutions that will be made by the drive shaft 127 to one revolution of the control shaft 34.

'I'he feed roller 85 in cooperation with the underlying idler roller 101, Figs. 8 and 13, advances a card C fed forwardly by the plate 56 into sensing position where it is operated on by sensing means such as those referred to hereinabove. The card is retained in this sensing station by stop linger arrangement including a vertical plate 118, Fig. 15, supported by anA arm 119 that is connected to the front bar 77 through a leaf spring 121. Normally plate 118 is disposed in the position shown in Fig. 15 so as to permit cards to advance through the guideway defined by the grooves 106 and 107 and during this time the arm 119 rests on the periphery of a cam fast on the shaft 34. When, however, a card is to be stopped and retained in sensing position, the at portion of the cam 123 moves into association with the arm 119 and this pennits the plate 118 to move into position between the grooves 106 and 107 and in such position as to be engageable by the leading end of a card as C so as to thereby accurately dispose the same in sensing position.

'Ihe card is retained in sensing position and is ejected therefrom by a feed roller 115, Figs. 3 and 14, which is mounted on a sleeve 116 which, in turn, is carried by a shaft 117 that is secured by a leaf spring 117S to the front bar 77. A pulley 97 fast on the sleeve 116 is driven by the belt tion through the guideway into the collecting hopper 33A.

Whether the shafts 127 and 34 are arranged forone to one operation as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, or whether the multiple relation is established in the manner shown, for example, in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, the shaft 127 is driven by bevel gears 135 and 136, Fig. 5, the bevel gear 135 being mounted on the shaft 127, while the bevel gear 136 is mounted on the shaft 137 journaled in bearings afforded in the printing machine. The shaft 137 has a large spur gear 138 rotatably mounted thereon and this spur gear is connected to this shaft through a one-revolution clutch of the kind disclosed in my Patent No. 2,265,133, patented December 9, 1941. Rotative movement is imparted to the gear 138 from the small gear 139, Fig. 5, mounted on a jack shaft 141 journaled in bearings provided in the frame of the printing machine. A relatively large spur gear 142 is integral with the small spur gear 139 and meshes with a small spur gear 143 mounted coaxially with and driven by the pulley 144. The pulley 144 is driven by a belt 145 from the Smau pulley 146'011 the shaft of the motor 5.

lowermost one of such cards will be fed from a supply magazine or hopper, and one in which the articles to be fed are accurately positioned and aligned.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of be understood that this is capable of variation and modification, and I I claim: l. In a machine of the character described compris- 1ng a magaz1ne 1n which cards or. similar plate-like stacked in vertical alignment` therein, saidbar terminatingshort of the bottom of the magazine a distance sllghtly greater than the thickness of one of said articles but less magazine thereby assuring effective advancement of the said lowermost article to the guideway.

3. In a machine of the character described comprising a magazine in which cards or similar plate-like articles each having a notch formed in one longitudinal edge being in alignment when beneath which said articles are to be fed, and a guideway extending from one end of the magazine to the station and along which said articles are to be advanced one by one, feed means for advancing the lowermost one of said articles positionable at the bottom of the magazine through an opening provided in the said one end onto the guideway, said feed means comprising, a bar-like holding and aligning element vertically arranged in the magazine at a location therein rearwardly of said one end and having a vertically extended portion configure complementary to the notch in each of said articles, said holding and aligning element terminating short of the bottom of the magazine a distance slightly greater than the thickness of one of said articles but less than the combined thickness of two of said articles whereby only the lowermost one of said articles in the magazine will be free of engagement with said holding and aligning element, a recprocable feed member adapted to move along the bottom of the magazine a predetermined distance in the direction of the said one end of the magazine, one end of said reciprocable member being disposed in the magazine at all times in position to lie the trailing end portion ofthe lowermost one of the stacked articles positionable therein, a flexible plate attached to and urged against one face of said member and having a free end adapted to abut against the trailing edge of the said lowermost one of the articles to feed the same through said opening and onto the guideway, and cam means at the bottom of said magazine for urging the free end of said exible plate vertically upward with respect thereto as the plate is moved toward the said one end of the magazine.

4. In a machine of the character described comprising a magazine in which cards or similar plate-like articles each having a notch formed in one longitudinal edge adjacent the trailing end are positionable, the notches being in alignment when the articles are stacked vertically in registration one with respect to another, a workperforming station t from. the' magazine, opening formed in one end of the magazine o whichsad articles are to be fed and a guideway extendlng from an to the station and along which said articles are to be advanced one by one, feed means one of said articles positiona magazine through said opening a said feed means comprising,

posed in being of in each of the said articles positionable in the magazine and terminating short of the bottom of the magazine a distance slightly greater than the thickness of one of said articles to thereby define a passageway at the bottom of the magazine for the said lowermost article, a camend slot provided in a portion of the bottom of the magazine and opening at the said other end thereof, a

feed member adapted to reciprocate in the passageway,

a liexible plate attached to the upper ciprocable' feed to abut against article to feed means carrie member and having a the trailing edge face of the refree end adapted of the said lowermost the same out through said opening, and

d on the lower face of the exible plate and adapted to slide in the slot and engage the cammed end thereof to urge alignment with the said trailing e most article.

the exible plate References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS upwardly into accurate dge of the said lower- 

